Middleboro fatal crash prompts questions

With an outstanding drug charge in Brockton District Court, some would say the driver who caused the fatal crash in Middleboro last week should not have been allowed on the road. Others say there’s no reason the RMV would have suspended his license based on details from his arrest.

When a person dies in a car accident, it’s normal for the victim’s family to ask why and what, if anything, could have prevented the tragedy.

In the crash that killed 46-year-old Christopher Backman in Middleboro last week, police are at odds as to whether anything could have been done.

Backman died July 4 after a truck driving the wrong way on Route 105 careened head-on into his Ford Focus. Backman’s girlfriend, Linda Millett of Middleboro, and her 5-year-old son, Evan Tyler, were also critically injured.

As of Tuesday, Millett remained in critical condition in a Boston hospital. Her son was released Friday and is staying with family in the area.

The driver of the truck, who police said caused the crash, also died. State police reconstruction teams determined he was driving 87 mph at the time of the crash.

With a pending drug charge in Brockton District Court, some are asking whether the driver, 27-year-old Patrick Adams of Plympton, should have even been allowed on the road.

In May, Adams was charged with one count of possession of a Class A substance (Suboxone) and one count of possession of heroin.

A state trooper had found Adams with a friend in a Brockton parking lot, sitting in a car with a bag of heroin in his pocket, according to court records.

State law gives the Registry of Motor Vehicles the authority to suspend a driver’s license for up to five years if the person is convicted of criminal possession.

Adams’ case was not concluded before his death.

Police say they found a spoon and needles consistent with heroin use scattered at the crash scene on July 4.

Middleboro Detective Sgt. Joe Perkins said police are still awaiting toxicology reports, which could take up to 90 days.

Perkins, who would not comment on the case because it is under investigation, said Tuesday, “I believe there’s a reason why the law is in place.”

“It’s not going to prevent someone from driving,” he added. “But if we have a tool to use to mitigate a possibly deadly scenario, then we’ll use it.”

Mitch Librett, a retired New York police lieutenant who works as a professor of criminal justice at Bridgewater State University, said that in this case, based on the details of his arrest, there is no reason Adams would have lost his license.

“This is one of those issues that when it appears in the press, does cause a great deal of outrage,” Librett said Tuesday.

But, he added, “The connection of ‘you’re an addict, you can’t drive’ – that doesn’t exist in law.”

Unless Adams was sitting in the driver’s seat with the car running at the time he was arrested, “the connection would be pretty weak ... There would be no reason for the RMV to revoke or suspend his license.”

Page 2 of 2 - He added, “As a citizen, you have to ask yourself, ‘How much power do we want the state to have?’ There’s a balance.”

One of Backman’s family members, who told The Enterprise in email she was outraged that Adams was still allowed to be driving, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Backman’s wake was Tuesday. His funeral is scheduled for Thursday at 10 a.m. at St. Gregory’s Church, 2223 Dorchester Ave., Dorchester.

Backman leaves three children who live with their mother in Stoughton. A family friend has set up a trust for the family to receive donations through Fidelity. Donors can use account number Z66-037141 to donate at any Fidelity Service Center, or mail a check to Fidelity Brokerage Services, LLC, P.O. Box 770001, Cincinnati, OH 45277-0003.